Battle of High Belt
The Battle of High Belt was a battle in the War of the Dorian Houses, which took place in the summer of 436 DR. The battle occurred in the fields between High Belt and Cantingvale. The battle proved to be a decisive Belthionist victory, as Therenane king Albus III was captured in the fray. The Belthionist force was led by Bertram Canting, while the Therenanist force was led by King Albus III. Background By the beginning of 436, the tide of the War of the Dorian Houses had turned against the Therenanes. They had repeatedly failed to reclaim the western parts of Dorio, and were increasingly losing their own strongholds, most significantly Cabalonvale in the last month of 435. In a bid to recoup the deteriorating Therenanist morale, reigning king Albus III started taking to the field himself. However, Albus— having always been a timid sort— tended to stay at the periphery of actual fighting, leading the morale effects to be middling at best. This habit of Albus' caused an upheaval in Belthionist strategies: rather than besiege Cantingvale, which would be slow and costly, the Belthionists changed their main priority to capturing Albus directly in battle. This strategy had been ineffective so far, as Albus' skittishness minimized his vulnerability, but Bertram Canting sought to ambush the Therenanist army and cut off Albus' routes of escape. Battle The two sides arranged for a pitched battle south of High Belt, to take place on 7 Parcother 436. This site was across the Araman River from Cantingvale, forcing the Therenanists to cross the river to reach the battle. The night before the battle, Bertram took just over half of his army and marched to a separate location several miles north of High Belt. When a messenger relayed to Bertram that the Therenanist army had departed Cantingvale, Bertram's contingent traveled south and intercepted Albus' army as it crossed the Merchant's Bridge. The Belthionists pushed to control the bridge, trapping Albus and his retinue on the west side of the river; as this occurred, Samson Hachwood led the remainder of the Belthionist army eastward to trap the Therenane forces. In the early stages of the battle, the Therenanists seemed likely to triumph, as Bertram's outnumbered contingent found itself trapped between two sides of Albus' army; however, the arrival of the rest of the Belthionists sparked panic among the Therenane leadership, and the western portion of the Therenane army crumbled. In the conclusion of the battle, Belthionist forces were able to surround Albus III and take him prisoner; with this task complete, the Belthionist center retreated from the battle with their quarry, and Samson Hachwood's cannoneers provided enough covering fire to prevent pursuit. Aftermath Albus was first kept prisoner in High Belt; forces under Warren Bervick attempted to besiege High Belt, but due to their disorganization they were quickly routed. The imprisonment of the Therenane king also caused wild fluctuations in the lords' allegiances, which Grant Belthion capitalized on. Under the auspices of royal castellan Virgil Baxham, Grant was allowed into Cantingvale and crowned as king on 30 Parcother. Category:Battles